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THE BALD FACTS: NOW IN PAPERBACK

The Bald Facts is more than the biography of popular, well-remembered winger. It is a tragic human-interest story of a previous footballing era – yet with clear topical impact.

Pat Symes’ acclaimed book examines the potential for an England international star to fall prey to injury, depression, unemployment, marital problems and ultimately poverty.

Like many gifted footballers of the seventies and eighties, the story told by legendary Middlesbrough, Southampton, Bournemouth and England winger David Armstrong includes some spectacular ups and downs; but the speed and ferocity of his personal rollercoaster ride are surely unique.

The break-up of his first marriage, his desperate desire for an ankle amputation and bailiffs at the door lend David’s riches-to-rags story of stardom and poverty a human appeal far beyond football.
• Armstrong reveals how he won his first England cap in Australia before being left to find his own way home.
• He tells the tale of how he was forced to sign on the dole four years after playing for England – of the misery of enduring five ankle operations, which have left him disabled.
• David speaks of the cost of his marriage break-up – how he has become estranged from his daughter, and how bailiffs came to his house demanding payment while he was still a First Division footballer.
• He talks of the desperation of life since he was forced into premature retirement, taking on a succession of jobs to stave off poverty, his permanent limp a reminder of the glory days.
• Featuring a foreword by Kevin Keegan and a tribute from Jack Charlton

Click here for more information, or to read a sample from The Bald Facts.